Mauricio Pochettino thinks 21-year-old Chelsea youngster is going to be so important for him now

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Mauricio Pochettino is keen to have a homegrown core in his Chelsea side, which is why the likes of Armando Broja should really benefit next season.

That is according to a report from The Evening Standard.

They claim that part of Mauricio Pochettino’s plan at Stamford Bridge is to build a Blues line-up with a strong homegrown core. Thankfully, we’ve had some super talents emerge from our academy at Cobham in recent years.

It is understood that Armando Broja, 21, is one of the Chelsea youngsters deemed really important by the new head coach.

The report adds Reece James, Levi Colwill and Conor Gallagher into that category, too.

Fans should definitely enjoy hearing Pochettino’s plans to actively promote academy graduates in the first team.

Broja, who was seriously unlucky to suffer a long-term injury last year, is now back training with the senior group during pre-season preparations.

In our view, the 21-year-old striker could be a real surprise package this campaign.

Everyone seems to have forgotten we’ve got a young and hungry centre-forward on the books, who’s shown in glimpses he can be a real handful for Premier League defences.

Hopefully, Pochettino shows faith in him and unlocks his potential.

Described as “brilliant” by Jason Cundy on talkSPORT (10:33, 30 August), Broja may grow into a quality frontman if nurtured correctly.

The Athletic claimed last October that many within Chelsea feel that Broja can end up developing into one of the world’s premium attackers.

It’s going to take a lot of resolve for him to bounce back from his injury issue, but he should take great heart from the fact Pochettino wants to use players like him.